Assigning Roles to Users

Role assignment determines what each user can access and do within your company. Every company user must have exactly one role.

Prerequisites

To manage role assignments, you need:

Assigning a Role to a New User

When creating a new user, you must select their role.

Changing an Existing User's Role

When Changes Take Effect

Role changes are immediate:

• User's next action uses new permissions
• No logout/login required
• Permissions are fetched fresh with each request

Self-Registration Role Assignment

When users self-register via domain verification:

Upgrading Self-Registered Users

After a user self-registers with Member role:

1. Navigate to Users
2. Find the new user
3. Edit and assign appropriate role
4. Save changes

Role Assignment Validation

Only Active Roles

The role dropdown only shows active roles:

One Role Per User

Each user can have only one role per company:

• Selecting a new role replaces the current one
• No multi-role assignment

Company Scope

When assigning roles:

• Only roles from the user's company are available
• Platform admins see roles for the selected company context

Role Comparison During Assignment

Understanding Your Options

Before assigning, understand what each role provides:

Custom Role Visibility

Custom roles appear alongside predefined ones in the role dropdown. For example:

• Member
• Manager
• Admin
• Travel Coordinator (Custom)
• Budget Analyst (Custom)

Bulk Role Assignment

To change multiple users' roles at once:

Access Change Notifications

Upgrading Access

When upgrading a user's role (e.g., Member → Manager):

• No notification is sent automatically
• Consider informing the user of their new capabilities
• They may need guidance on new features

Downgrading Access

When downgrading a user's role (e.g., Admin → Member):

• User may see errors on next access attempt
• In-progress work may be lost if permissions are revoked
• Best practice: Communicate the change beforehand

Common Assignment Scenarios

New Employee Onboarding

1. HR creates user with Member role
2. User completes profile and starts booking
3. If approved for management duties, upgrade to Manager

Promotion to Manager

1. Navigate to user
2. Change role to Manager
3. Notify user of new dashboard access and approval capabilities

Department Head

1. Create or select custom role with appropriate permissions
2. Or use Admin for full access
3. Assign to the department head

Temporary Access

For temporary elevated access:

1. Upgrade user to higher role
2. Set a calendar reminder
3. Downgrade after the period ends

Troubleshooting

Can't Find Role in Dropdown

Possible causes:

• Role is inactive → Reactivate the role
• Role is in different company → Check company context
• Role was deleted → Create a new role

Permission Not Working After Assignment

1. Verify the role was saved (reopen user and check)
2. Confirm the role has the expected permissions
3. Have user refresh their browser
4. Check for browser caching issues

User Already Has Role

When trying to assign the same role:

• No change is made
• No error is shown
• This is expected behavior

Best Practices

Document Assignments

Keep records of role assignments:

Regular Review

Monthly review:

• Users with Admin role — still appropriate?
• Users with elevated custom roles — still needed?
• New employees — correct role?

Least Privilege

Start users with minimal access:

1. Assign Member by default
2. Upgrade only when business need is clear
3. Document the reason for elevated access